Monday 26 March 2007 05.55 EDT
First published on Monday 26 March 2007 05.55 EDT

It is very easy to find scapegoats when a team is doing badly. The harder part is to understand why players are under-performing and, in Wayne Rooney's case, it is particularly bewildering that England's best footballer is partly accountable for turning the famous Steve McClaren smile into such an anguished frown.

McClaren was in such a state on Saturday night - sweating profusely, forgetting his lines - he was in no fit condition to offer a reasoned explanation about Rooney's perplexing form. However, it is known that the England manager picked out the youngster for special criticism in the dressing room.

This is a debate that needs a clear head because Rooney, for long periods of his career, has been immune in the England blame game and something is clearly malfunctioning.

Ask those England fans who chanted "you're not fit to wear the shirt" and "what a load of rubbish" here in Tel Aviv and the Manchester United striker will probably come last in the list of players they want sent to the stocks. Many will take umbrage to find their hero questioned. Rooney is the crowd's favourite, a spectator's player. And yet a newcomer to the sport could have taken a seat in the Ramat Gan Stadium and been forgiven for thinking that the visiting No9 did not even enjoy football.

Here is a sportsman so talented that questioning his ability is the equivalent of taking Tiger Woods to task about his backswing or being disparaging about Roger Federer's serve. But there are legitimate reasons to be concerned. Who could have foreseen that Rooney would fail to score a competitive goal for his country since those thrilling days at Euro 2004?

To scan the newspaper archives is to put his current form in context and be reminded of the differences in his performances between then and now. Le Monde encapsulated his style as "poisonous to his opponent, making his elders look ridiculous".

The facts, however, are stark. Since Euro 2004 Rooney has added 20 caps to his collection yet scored only three times, all coming in friendly matches: the 1-1 draw against Holland last November, a year earlier in the 3-2 win against Argentina and in the 4-1 win over Denmark in 2005. He has not scored in the Champions League for Manchester United since September 2004.

His admirers are entitled to point out that Rooney's role in the team is far more complex than to patrol the opposition penalty area like an orthodox centre-forward. England may not have scored in four of their last five games but, as Steven Gerrard pointed out: "You can't just point your finger at the strikers. It's down to myself, Frank Lampard, Aaron Lennon and other players to help the forwards score goals."

The issue here, though, is not just one of goals. Rooney's body language, to put it bluntly, stank. He spent large parts of the evening remonstrating with the Norwegian referee, all arms and larynx, as he complained about nothing in particular. Had the game carried on much longer it is likely he would have been sent off before he scored. And this is not a one-off. Reports also indicate that Rooney's petulance continued into the dressing room following McClaren's post-match assessment.

The more thoughtful United supporters will say, in simple terms, that the secret is out. Rooney has, at times, been beguiling this season but, increasingly, these have been sporadic moments. His club performances have ranged from outstanding to indifferent, yet the poorer performances have largely gone unreported while the team are winning consistently.

As England set off for Barcelona yesterday he will be grateful the next game is against a ski resort. Andorra are 163rd in Fifa's world rankings and, as opponents go, the tiny principality are football's equivalent of a back-rub at the end of a hard week in the office. They will be sympathetic opponents and that might be what Rooney needs at a time when his England career is in danger of stagnating.

England's boos cruise

England 0 Spain 1 Feb 7 2007

England are exposed down the left as Spain capitalise on Steve McClaren's decision not to start with a left-midfielder. David Villa and Andrés Iniesta run riot, with a 15-yard Iniesta strike ensuring the boos ring out at Old Trafford.

Holland 1 England 1 Nov 15 2006

A late Raphael van der Vaart strike cancels out Wayne Rooney's opener. Rio Ferdinand, John Terry and Paul Robinson are all culpable in the build-up to the 86th-minute goal.

Croatia 2 England 0 Oct 11 2006

The game will be best remembered for Robinson's howler from Gary Neville's backpass.

England 0 Macedonia 0 Oct 7 2006

Rooney struggles in a game memorable only for being so unmemorable. Peter Crouch and Gary Neville spurn decent chances.